the-charmily-blog

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Until next time Australia! Thanks for all the love!

#charmilyinaustralia

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Found a Fiancé at the Great Barrier Reef!

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I said yes!

8.19.19

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Days 9-10: Sydney

We stayed close to Bondi Beach and discovered a coastal walking path that goes from Bondi to Coogee passing through beaches and parks for about 6 km (3.5 miles). We enjoyed watching the surfers and open water swimmers at the beaches and Charlie jumped in the ocean a few times even though it was a bit chilly (between 60-70°F). On the last full day of our trip we went to an Aussie Rules Football Match (Footy) to see the Sydney Swans face off against the St. Kilda Saints. Luckily we had a real life Australian with us to explain the rules of the game and the history of the Cricket stadium. The game is played in a huge oval feild, though each stadium is slightly different. It was the last game of the regular season and also Pride night and the Swans got the W! Go sports team!!!

Quotes of the day:

"There's an ease that I have living in Australia. The best things about Sydney are free: the sunshine's free, and the harbour's free, and the beach is free." -Russell Crowe

"God bless America. God save the Queen. God defend New Zealand and thank Christ for Australia." -Also Russell Crowe

"I have respect for beer." -Russell Crowe again

Further reading for your enjoyment:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_rules_football

https://m.sydneyswans.com.au/club/our-club/club-song

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Day 8: Sydney

We flew from Hobart to Sydney to spend the last few days of our trip. We spent the first day near the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbor Bridge, and both were just as picturesque as expected. We had drinks at the Opera House bar and dinner reservations at Bennelong inside the Opera House. It was fancy af. We shared a bottle of wine and ate Australian cuisine; Charlie had prawn congee, barramundi, and an assortment of Aussie cheeses. Emily had Bay Bug, mushroom Ravioli, and whisky ice cream. It was wonderful and we got just a wee bit tipsy.

Things we learned: There are virtually no straws in Australia, and the times we have been given straws, they've been paper/cardboard. South Australia introduced a ban on plastic cutlery, straws and stirrers earlier this year. Go team!

Further reading for your enjoyment:

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/jul/06/leading-the-country-south-australia-to-ban-plastic-cutlery-straws-and-stirrers

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More from Tassie!

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Day 7: Tasmania

We arrived in Devonport, Tasmania (the locals refer to Tasmania as 'Tassie') early after a rocky night. We had a bit of trouble getting our land legs back after so many days at sea. We rented a car in Devonport and Charlie quickly became well adjusted to driving on the left side of the road, though he did keep turning the windshield wipers on everytime he turned or switched lanes.

After breakfast at a Raspberry farm, we drove through Cradle Mountain and around Tassie's Great Lake. The roads were covered in snow up in the mountains, but the views were absolutely breathtaking. Once we got out of the mountains, we drove down the East coast of the island and stopped in the small town of St. Mary's for a halfway beer, as is customary. We met two Aussies with super thick accents at the hotel bar. They were happily named Frenchie and Tac. They offered to take us hunting, however we weren't sure if we would be the hunters or the hunted, so we respectfully declined.

The wildlife was pretty spectacular, and we saw deer, wallabies and wombats, though some only as roadkill tbh. The roads were narrow and windy, but we got to see a marvelous bit of Tassie's coastline. We drove to Freycinet National Park and visited a couple of wineries along the way. We stayed at a magical Airbnb on the coast and saw the most unbelievable stars. We wish we had more time in Tasmania, but are grateful for the little piece of heaven we found there.

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Day 6: Melbourne

After returning from the dive boat, we met up with fellow divers to drink Bavarian beer and have a celebratory shot of Jaeger. The next morning we caught an early flight to Melbourne. We had "brekky" in St. Kilda with an Aussie angel and a lovely German bloke we'd met diving. Emily is a big fan of the smashed avocado thing they have going on here.

We didn't have too much time in Melbourne, but they have a saying here: "when life gives you lemons, you go to as many bars in Melbourne as you can," so we did just that. We drank only Australian liquors and beers so it was still culturally educational. We walked along the Yarra River and became acquainted with the train system in the city before heading to the ferry that would take us from Melbourne to Devonport, Tasmania overnight.

The ship had a buffet and live music so we settled in nicely, but once the ship got out of the bay, things got real rocky. The captain came on overhead and said there were some 'swells' and that he expected "a fair amount of motion." The waves reached our 8th floor window, and the seas were so rough that a glass fell off a table and shattered in our room! Honestly though, Charlie probably would've knocked it over anyway. We made it through the night and arrived in Tasmania early the next morning rejuvenated and ready to go!

Quote of day: "I don't do things for the response or for the controversy. I just live my life." - Rihanna

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This was the first time we've dived completely unguided and we appreciated our dive master's artwork in detailing each dive briefing!

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More from the dive boat! 🌊🛥️

We dove and ate and slept and drank goon and it was altogether beautiful.

Things we learned: Cantelope is called 'rock melon' here. Eggplant is called 'aubergine' and Arugula is called 'rocket'. Plus Lemonade is actually a carbonated drink similar to Sprite... wtf?

#prodivecairns #charmilyinaustralia

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Days 3-5: Great Barrier Reef

We left early on Sunday to dive the Milln and Flynn reefs along the Great Barrier. We met phenomenal individuals from all over the world and completed 10 dives getting down to approximately 20 meters (65 feet). We saw unparalleled coral walls and bommies, plus lots of other things, including but not limited to:

Fish of the Parrot, Rainbow, Unicorn and Trumpet varieties

Nemo, Dory and friends

Ocean Flatworms

Sea turtles

Stingrays

Gray Reef sharks

One of the major highlights were the night dives. Despite Charlie's healthy fear of dark water, these were arguably the most tranquil dives and the fish were super active. At one point we stopped and knelt down on a sandy opening. We turned our torches off and waved our arms around. The bioluminescence sparked with our movements and we felt like the wizards we truly are at heart.

Quote of the day: "The best way to observe a fish is to become a fish." -Jaques Cousteau

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Day 2: Sydney/Cairns

We woke up early to watch the sunrise from Darling harbor. We had breakfast at Sokyo, a Japanese fusion restaurant. Charlie ate spicy crab udon and Emily had the best eggs benedict of her life. Then Charlie insisted on buying a hat and Emily drank four lattes. We walked to the airport making our way across Sydney and stopping at bars along the way. We ate chicken parma, which is a thing here.. it's basically chicken parmesan on top of ham on top of fries. It's a good idea. We then flew from Sydney to Cairns on the northeastern coast of Queensland to dive the Great Barrier Reef. Cairns is a beautiful coastal town with heaps of lovely shops and bars and big old trees. We listened to live music in a park, drank Australian wine and lost 50 dollars at the local casino. Alas, it was a lovely evening. Gone diving now! We'll see you on the other side!

Things we learned: Cheap boxed wine is called goon or a goon bag. Example: 1) Let the goon flow mate! 2) Oy mate, you drank two goon bags yourself?

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Day 1: Sydney

We arrived in Sydney at 7am after 26 hours of tumultuous travel. Our flights from Minneapolis and Phoenix were both delayed which resulted in some brisk walking/light jogging through LAX to make it on our flight to Sydney. The 15 hour flight lasted approximately three lifetimes but we made it in tact with our bags and sanity. We were blown away by the beauty of Sydney and set to the task of exploring it! We visited the Sydney fish market, where we tried a variety of seafood, including octopus, squid, prawn, scallops and barramundi, and discovered Mornay and Kilpatrick oysters. We wandered through the Pyrmont neighborhood, saw kangaroos, koalas, and wallabies at the Sydney Wildlife Zoo and a big submarine at the Maritime museum before heading to Sydney's Chinatown for some hot pot and dumplings. The nightlife in Sydney was alive and well though we didn't make it too late before crashing hard from a mix of jetlag and artisanal cocktails.

Things we learned: Vegemite should be spread thinly over toast with butter, or better yet, avoided entirely.

#charmilyinaustralia

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Cheers mates! We're off to Australia to go exploring! 🇦🇺

"Crikey means gee whiz, wow!" -Steve Irwin

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Days 12-13: Amsterdam, Netherlands 🇳🇱 From Riga, we flew to Amsterdam, our final destination. We walked out of Central Station and were immediately met with views of canals lined with beautiful buildings, an unmistakable herbal smell, and more bikes than we'd ever seen in one place. Bikes on bikes on bikes. Charlie made the apt analysis that walking through Amsterdam slightly resembled playing Frogger, where we were the frogs dodging nonstop bikes and cars and mopeds and trams. We stayed in an Airbnb just off the canals and were mystified by the complete beauty of the city's layout. We visited a coffee shop and ate Dutch pancakes and tried to make time slow down. The next day we did the Van Gogh museum and the Rijksmuseum and walked the Old Center and the Jordaan district. We drank Dutch gin and beer, and learned that when Jenever is drunk with beer as a chaser, it is referred to as a kopstoot, or a headbutt. We loved the architecture along the city's 17th-century golden age canals; it was all so gezellig. We're now at the airport, awaiting our flight home. It's bittersweet that this trip is coming to a close, but we're so grateful for all of the sights we had the pleasure of seeing, and perhaps moreso for all of the dinner tables and drinks we had the pleasure of sharing with friends, both new and old. Thank you to everyone who made this trip so unforgettably wonderful! Cheers! Sláinte! Skål! Priekā! Proost! #charmilyadventures

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We Amsterdam! #charmilyadventures

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Days 8-9: Stockholm, Sweden 🇸🇪 We took the train from Gothenburg to Stockholm and accidentally booked 1st class tickets, sooooo that was a happy mistake. It was the most amazing train we've ever been on, complete with a restaurant, bar, and live music. We got to Stockholm and walked the streets of Gamla Stan (old town) before meeting up with some Stockholm locals and friends - Mats, Summer, and Oliver. We spent a beautiful night with them and are so grateful for their hospitality and kindness. Plus they had gin. The next day, despite some heavy rain, we explored the royal castle and Södermalm, which is a really hip area, perfect for us since we're really hip in general. From Stockholm we embarked a ship bound for Riga. Charlie quickly took it upon himself to scope out the entire boat and find all the best hang outs (blackjack tables, disco, grocery story, Irish pub, etc). The trip through Sweden's eastern archipelago was breathtaking and the trip itself was a wondrous 16 hours even though Emily experienced some mild seasickness (it may have actually been a result of the beers being served with a side of fireball). Skål! Days 10-11: Riga, Latvia 🇱🇻 We arrived in Riga midmorning and were immediately enchanted by the beauty of its architecture, parks, and winding cobblestone streets. We found a fellow traveler (Brad), who was ready to go exploring and so we set out on a quest to discover the city! We did a walking tour of old town, learned about Riga's history, and got to see the art nouveau architecture that is so prevalent in, and beautiful about Riga. We tried black balsam in an underground medieval bar. It's a traditional Latvian, herbal liquor made with many different ingredients and mixed with vodka, making a 45% (90 proof) drink. We thought it tasted like black licorice. The classical music of the Latvian buskers, coupled with the gorgeous old city felt like a fairytale. Riga serenaded us we think. Priekā! #charmilyadventures